American salsa legend Willie Colón, a pioneering trombonist, vocalist, and composer, was honoured with a funeral Mass at St Patrick’s Cathedral in New York – complete with a symphony of trombones to play him out.
Colón died 21 February at age 75, his family said in a statement.
Born in the Bronx to Puerto Rican parents, Colón recorded dozens of albums, including El Malo, which sold more than 300,000 copies, according to his biography on the LA Philharmonic website.
Colón’s music combined elements of jazz, rock, and salsa, incorporating the rhythms of traditional music from Cuba, Puerto Rico, Brazil, and Africa.
